G‘day! Partakers Christian podcasts of Bible Teaching, Bible Readings, Worship, Prayer and Church History on Podbean to help enable and encourage you! Come listen and interact.
Episodes
Friday Jan 03, 2020
Friday Jan 03, 2020
Christmas 2019 26. A Good Moral Teacher?
Today we have another question? Was Jesus Christ simply a good moral teacher, and nothing more? It is often a statement often associated with Jesus Christ, that he was simply a good moral teacher. Nothing more. Nothing less. This thinking is also untenable and unworkable. How so? We start by asking ourselves, if Jesus’ teaching reflects a good way to live, and if they do, what did he teach?
Jesus’ moral code, revolving around the part of the Bible we call the Old Testament, can be summarized as “do to others, what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 7:12). Some people refer to this as the “Golden Rule“.
However, Jesus with greater insight went further than anybody else. He goes on to say that it is not only the outward actions of a person that makes them morally good, it is also the internal attitude behind it (Matthew 15:17–20).
People often think Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount is the most wonderful teaching and therefore think Jesus was a great teacher (Matthew 5-7). But they have not understood what he was saying, and why he said it.
Therefore, while this may indeed be the best-known teaching of Jesus, it is quite possibly also the most misunderstood. It is most certainly the least obeyed of all his teaching. Again, how is that so?
Quite often today Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount is seen as mostly a call not to react violently even when faced with direct provocation. However this was never Jesus intention. It was never meant to be a group of general guidelines for our comfort to wallow in. Nor was it designed to give us boundless joy in how good we are being! Upon reading this teaching of Jesus, we see that Jesus’ original intention for this teaching was that it was to reflect the values, standards and priorities of God’s Kingdom. This is what Jesus was talking about when he gave the “Sermon on the Mount”.
Certainly Jesus was a good moral teacher! Moreover, was he simply a good moral teacher or was he more than this simple claim? To assert that Jesus was merely a good moral teacher, nothing more and nothing less, is a foolish thing to think or express. Nobody could do or say the things that Jesus did, and not be who he said and showed he was: Almighty God.
That is all for today! Come back tomorrow to see more in our Christmas series 2019, looking at Jesus Christ, the promised one of God.
Right Mouse click or tap here to save this as an audio mp3 file
Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!
Thursday Jan 02, 2020
Thursday Jan 02, 2020
Christmas 2019 25. Why Would God Become Human?
A natural question now follows. Why would God become human? God Himself has taken on the responsibility for our sins. Jesus when he died on the cross bore our sins. Although he was sinless, he therefore became sin for us. By doing this, we are drawn to him in a personal way. God has shown that he loves us and wants us in a relationship with himself.
God is one and therefore there could only be one incarnation - that is God taking on a human form – fully God and fully human. By doing away with the incarnation, could God’s salvation plan be fulfilled? No way! If Jesus was not fully God, then he would be part of the problem and therefore need to be redeemed himself! That would not work as there then would be no possibility of redeeming humanity so that they could have relationship and fellowship with God.
God Himself has bridged the gap between the supernatural and the natural, the infinite and the finite. God did this to show humanity what he is like. Jesus as God in person gives us a focal point to respond to. God does not force people to love Him, for that would not be love. His love is compelling but it is not coercive. God does invite all into a dynamic relationship with him. Clarification can be seen through reading the Bible. For example, Jesus, the Son of God came as a man to:
- humble Himself (Philippians 2:8)
- reveal God the Father (John 1:18, 14:9)
- become our advocate before God (1 John 2:1)
- destroy satan’s work (Hebrews 2:14, 1 John 3:8)
- give an example of a perfect life (1 Peter 2:21)
- prepare for creation’s redemption (1 John 2:2)
We also know Jesus’ full glory was hidden during his time on earth (John 17:6) and that he lived on the resources of his Father (John 5:19-20 & 30, 14:10). Jesus emptied Himself (Philippians 2:5-7) and was made like us (Philippians 2:7) when he became human (John 1:4).
If Jesus Christ was not fully God and fully human, then he would be part of the problem. Therefore he would need to be redeemed himself! Simply put, that is untenable and unworkable! Jesus whilst being fully God, didn’t lose any of his divinity when he became human. Instead Jesus Christ gained humanity and we call this divine and human nature unity - a ‘hypostatic union‘.
That is all for today! Come back tomorrow to see more in our Christmas series 2019, looking at Jesus Christ, the promised one of God.
Right Mouse click or tap here to save this as an audio mp3 file
Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!
Wednesday Jan 01, 2020
Wednesday Jan 01, 2020
Christmas 2019 24. Jesus - Fully Human
We looked very briefly yesterday about Jesus being fully God. Today we go further and investigate very briefly at Jesus being fully human. That Jesus was a man who existed is not really disputable. There are a large variety of documents from that period of time about Him, including many and various sources outside the Bible.
The primary historical documents about Him, the Bible, state Jesus Christ was born of a woman, which in itself tells us that before he was born he was nurtured and formed as any other male baby was and is. His genealogical line is given and he grew into maturity as any young Jewish boy did. These documents we know today as the Bible books Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
We know from these four ‘biographies’, or gospels, written about him, that in line with his humanity, Jesus exhibited normal human emotions. Emotions such as love, sorrow, joy, anger and anguish. Jesus ate and drank. He had a body and a soul. Jesus grew tired. He slept & perspired. He wept. Jesus died just as all mortal people do. Religiously, Jesus worshipped as a Jew.
It is quite clear that the four gospel writers, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, considered Jesus to be human in the ordinary every day sense of the word. Particularly Matthew and John, who were two of Jesus’ closest friends. Jesus Christ was human in every way that we are – physically, mentally and emotionally. The only possible exception to this is that Jesus was sinless.
How do we know that for certain? Because if Jesus was not without sin, if he had sinned, he too would have been in need of a Saviour! God’s salvation plan for humanity would have been scuppered. Remember that is why Jesus Christ was sent – to fulfil and enact God’s salvation plan for humanity. It is the very clear testimony of all the New Testament writers that Jesus was the Saviour, and not in need of one Himself. So why does Jesus need to be fully human?
Firstly, so Jesus could align Himself with us by being our representative before God, so that his death could turn aside God’s anger at our sinfulness. Secondly so that Jesus can be in sympathy with us and pray for us. Thirdly, so Jesus could exhibit true and perfect humanity. Fourthly, so that as a consequence of his perfect humanity, Jesus is the perfect example for us to follow.
In Jesus Christ, the God-man, we see that God is a personal God. A God who wants to interact with us and communicate to us! WOW! Tomorrow we will go on to see the reason for God needing to become a human.
That is all for today! Come back tomorrow to see more in our Christmas series 2019, looking at Jesus Christ, the promised one of God.
Right Mouse click or tap here to save this as an audio mp3 file
Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!
Tuesday Dec 31, 2019
Tuesday Dec 31, 2019
Christmas 2019 23. Jesus - Fully God
Yesterday we looked at what the name Jesus meant and how it was appropriate that he was called that. Today we are looking briefly at Jesus being fully God!
God’s salvation plan for humans’ involved triumphant victory over sin, death and the grave. However no person could be found who was eligible or capable enough to do this. So God stepped into human history, so that this victory could be achieved. This is what we celebrate at Christmas.
This God-man would be fully human, so as to live every feature of humanity, including suffering and death. This God-man would also need to remain fully God, so as to be big enough and powerful enough to defeat sin, death and the grave. A human could only die for their own sins. However God could die for the sins of all humanity. Jesus, being sinless, was this God-man, consisting as he did of two complete natures, the God nature and the human nature.
Throughout the Bible, Jesus is acknowledged as God. His good friend, John expressly calls Jesus, ‘the Word’ or God (John 1). Later on in John’s life, he states that Jesus was truly God and also eternal life! (1 John 5:20)
Jesus Himself claimed equality with God when he forgave people their sins (Matthew 9:2; Mark 2:9; Luke 7:48). The Jewish rulers reckoned this was a God alone thing and dependant on the involvement of the temple authorities. They therefore accused Him, at least in their minds, of blasphemy against God!
During the questioning when Jesus was on trial for this supposed act of blasphemy, Jesus equated Himself with being God (Matthew 26:64). John, reports many times where Jesus used the ancient name of God. “I AM”. In reference to Himself. (John 6:35, 48 & 51; John 8:12; John 10:7-11; John 10:14-15; John 11:25; John 14:6 and John 15:1)
That Jesus is both human and divine is what makes Christianity unique amongst the religions of the world. It is why Jesus’ claims to be the only way to God, are true. Of course this is only a brief synopsis of what the Bible affirms about Jesus being fully God! Be encouraged to study this exciting topic for yourself!
That is all for today! Come back tomorrow to see more in our Christmas series 2019, looking at Jesus Christ, the promised one of God.
Right Mouse click or tap here to save this as an audio mp3 file
Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!
Monday Dec 30, 2019
Monday Dec 30, 2019
Christmas 2019 22. What’s In A Name?
I wonder what your name means. Parents often name their children after the hopes and aspirations they have for that child. For example, I know somebody called Grace, and her nature is full of grace.
My name, David, means “beloved”. When my parents named me, it was meant to symbolize the love they had for me. Although when I put the cricket ball through the kitchen window or the time I crushed the vegetable patch whilst running after a football, I did not feel very beloved afterwards!
When Jesus was born, his name expressed the very reason he was born. His conception and birth were extraordinary at every level. Do you think that his parents ever gazed upon him and thought “How misnamed he is”! They did not, because they knew the very purpose for which he was born. Did Jesus ever think of how misnamed he was? Certainly not! For Jesus’ name means ‘the one who saves’ or ‘a rescuer’.
In light of this, Jesus knew his purpose and his mission (Luke 4:42-44). Jesus Christ’ whole birth, life and death were centered on saving all those who would follow him. He is the most talked about person in history. Almost everyone has an opinion about him. Jesus Christ was born to fulfill the promises God had made over many years. You can read them for yourself in the part of the Bible we call the Old Testament.
Jesus Christ came to reveal God as a Father, to die instead of us for the punishment we deserve, in order that he may stand before God on our behalf and also to show us what it means to live a holy and perfect life here on earth. The life of Jesus Christ was a life totally dedicated to obediently following God and revealing God to the world. Such was the impact of the person Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ was not merely a man who received some special power. Jesus Christ was not some strange creation that was half man and half God, with his human nature somehow absorbed into the divine. Jesus Christ was much more than these suggestions! Let us go on to discover together much more about this most amazing of men!
That is all for today! Come back tomorrow to see more in our Christmas series 2019, looking at Jesus Christ, the promised one of God.
Right Mouse click or tap here to save this as an audio mp3 file
Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!
Sunday Dec 29, 2019
Sunday Dec 29, 2019
21. A Christmas Prayer Service
Today as part of our Christmas 2019 series, we have a prayer service where we offer to our God, prayers of the Church from history. Come, Church! Let's pray together!
1. Nativity Prayer of St. Bernard of Clairvaux
2. Nativity Prayer from the Orthodox Liturgy Feast of the Nativity
3. An advent prayer dating from the 10th century...
4. Christ, Redeemer of All
5. A Nativity Prayer of St. Augustine
6. The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Amen.
That is all for today! Come back tomorrow to see more in our Christmas series 2019, looking at Jesus Christ, the promised one of God.
Right Mouse click or tap here to save this as an audio mp3 file
Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!
Saturday Dec 28, 2019
Saturday Dec 28, 2019
Christmas 2019 20. Mary’s Song
Introduction
Luke 2:39-56
There is much to be said about this time of year we call Christmas. Worldwide there are about 250 babies born every minute.
Yet, the birth we celebrate at Christmas, is like no other birth of a human. That birth of the man Jesus Christ, 2000 years ago, caused the world to change. The birth of Jesus Christ causes more of the world today to pause amidst the busy-ness of life, take a breath amidst the noise of daily life and celebrate in many different ways and fashions.
Enough of an introduction, let’s get down to business! Here is what John Calvin, one of the giants of Church History, says about this passage:
“Now follows a remarkable and interesting song of the holy virgin, which plainly shows how eminent were her attainments in the grace of the Spirit.”
Isn’t that a beautiful thing for him to say about Mary? Here is what the reformer Martin Luther said of this passage, the Magnificat:
“In order properly to understand this sacred hymn of praise, we need to bear in mind that the most blessed Virgin Mary is speaking out of her own experience, in which she was enlightened and instructed by the Holy Spirit.”
Synopsis (Download the mp3 using the link below to hear in full)
1. Mary visits Elizabeth
2. Mary’s Song – Synopsis
3. God: Holy and Almighty
4. Why did Mary have to be a virgin?
Conclusion
What can we take away with us today from this story from the Bible? We saw how Mary burst into song. Much is made erroneously of Mary by some people down through history as well as today. She isn’t, as some purport, to be the Queen of Heaven. She was not eternally a virgin, because we know that the marriage to Joseph was consummated afterwards and that they had other children together. She needed a Saviour herself, and I think she knew that when it was announced to her that she was to be with child by a work of God. I don’t think she would want the attention to be on her, as some people want to do these days, but as evidenced in this song, to deflect automatically all glory and praise to God.
Are we like that in our dealings with others? Do we deflect all praise to God for the things that he has done for us in the past, is doing things for us now and will do in the future? That is part of what it means to be humble.
We have been given a job to do as Christians, as well. To tell others about the amazing work of God done in our lives, in order to bring people back into relationship with God? That is what we have been trying to do on these Thursdays in the lead up to Christmas. God may have given you a specific job to do. How are you getting on with these things?
Are you like Mary who considered it a blessing and honour to be of service to God and other humans? Or are you like most people, just ignoring it, or not being so happy to do what you have been told to do? I am sure you would love this Church to be filled with people. If you do, then you will tell other people about the Jesus you serve. We looked at this recently from Romans 10 together.
Jesus coming into the world was so that He would be the Saviour of the whole world. His life, death and resurrection would establish salvation for all who would believe and receive it, regardless of their race, colour, creed, culture, or social status. Jesus came so that people can turn to being friends with God. This Jesus is somebody whom I depend upon and personally know to be totally reliable in every way. When people let me down, turn away from me, discourage me, think wrongly off me, incorrectly assume my motives, this Jesus always picks me up, never turns me away and always encourages and embraces me. All through each day, I know that Jesus has been dependable, going ahead of me! Amazing!
God stepped into human history in the person of Jesus Christ so that triumphant victory over evil and death could be achieved. That Jesus is both God and human is what makes Christianity unique. It is why Jesus’ claims to be the only way to God are true and it is why millions of people today worship Him and acknowledge Him as their God.
If you are not a Christian, the opportunity for you to do so is still here. At Christmas time, we celebrate the birth of Jesus. Jesus, the God-man who entered human history, conquered sin, suffering and death. Jesus Christ who grew into adulthood, who died a horrific and painful death and was raised to new life again by God. When you allow Jesus to be your Saviour and rely on Him for the salvation that you need, you become spiritually alive. Until then, you are spiritually dead. But you can have spiritual life.
Come and follow this personal and personable God who knows what suffering is about. What are you waiting for? Again, I ask, who do you say this Jesus is? You have a choice to make. Deny Jesus now and he will deny you. Accept Jesus now and he will accept you. It is not too late. Today can be the day of your salvation and new life.
Right Mouse click or tap here to save this as an audio mp3 file
Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!
Friday Dec 27, 2019
Friday Dec 27, 2019
Christmas 2019 19. Wise Men on a Journey
1 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem 2 and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”
3 When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. 5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:
6 “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’”
7 Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. 8 He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”
9 After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. 10 When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. 11 On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. 12 And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.
13 When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”
14 So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, 15 where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.”
16 When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. 17 Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:
18 “A voice is heard in Ramah,
weeping and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be comforted,
because they are no more.”
Matthew 2:1-18
We are now going to think about the Magi, or wise men as they are popularly known. Travelling is what these men were doing, and probably for quite a long time. Why? For it seems they originated in what we now call Iran but used to be called Persia. The Magi were sort of priestly group - not kings, as is usually supposed in traditional Christmas presentations. They were men who studied the night skies for signs of what was going to happen. We would label them astrologers today, but they were more than that. They were aware of ancient writings and promises that had been made long before they were born, and looked to see where and when they would be fulfilled. Those who visited Jesus had seen a clear sign that an ancient promise was shortly coming to pass.
There is a verse in the Old Testament, Numbers 24:17 which reads, ‘A star will come out of Jacob; a sceptre will rise out of Israel.’ No wonder, then, that they burst into Jerusalem, the capital of Israel, with the question, ‘Where is the one who has been born King of the Jews? We’ve seen his star. . we’ve come to worship him.’
With a bit of help from the Jewish scholars, the star took them to Bethlehem, where they found the young child with his mother. They brought gifts of gold, incense and myrrh. These three gifts may have suggested that there were just three of them in the party, but Matthew gives us no data on that. Gold; frankincense and myrrh. Gold, a gift fit for a king. Incense, a gift appropriate for a priest; still used today in some churches. Myrrh, a gift suggesting sacrifice and death, for it was an embalming spice. What other insights did they have, we wonder, as they travelled and talked among themselves.
Matthew understood that they were significant to the story of Jesus birth, not just because they came, but because they were part of God’s strategy for Jesus. Those gifts were valuable, extremely so, and their value would have provided the means for the Holy Family to escape into Egypt and remain there for as long as it was necessary. This thought is strengthened by the fact that it was the Magi’s visit that provoked Herod’s wrath and his vicious massacre of the young boys of Bethlehem.
There is something unexplained and mysterious about this visit of the Magi but, whatever else may be true, it makes the point for us that Jesus coming into the world was not only to save his people – that is the Jewish people – from their sins. Far from it; he was coming to be the Saviour of the world. His life, death and resurrection would establish salvation for all who would believe and receive it, regardless of race, colour, creed, culture, or social status.
In emphasising the nature of the gifts they brought, we may overlook that, first of all, ‘they bowed down and worshipped him.’ They realised to some extent, that he was more than just another earthly king; that, somehow, he was destined to be of wider and greater significance than that. The apostle John was later to write of him as ‘The Word of God’ and penned the words, ‘The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.’ Perhaps these Magi were Wise Men after all, in that they partly understood what we’ve come to call incarnation – God on earth as a real human being!
A question for you to think about. ‘What gift could you bring to the Lord Jesus this Christmas that would express your love for him?’
Let’s finish by thinking about the stable scene in Bethlehem. Mary looking at Jesus with a mother’s love for her firstborn child, and with deep thoughts about how different their lives would be from here on. Joseph, still with Gabriel’s words ringing in his ears, already slipping into the role of being father to God’s Son. The shepherds, alive with excitement and looking with wonder at the little baby whose future was to be so big. The Magi, kneeling before the one they know is destined to be more than a king, worshipping him in a manner that befitted their religion and understanding. It’s good for us to join them all around the manger, giving thanks and praise to God for the gift of his only Son.
The Lord bless you today, and then as you move into the new year. Whatever it holds for you, if you’ve stood in the stable today, you will know that God will be with you and nothing is impossible with him.
We began our journey with that promise. We’ve seen how it happened for these characters. The question we now have to face and work through is,
‘Will it be true for me?’
There’s only one way to find out - trust him; he’s as good as his word.
That is all for today! Come back tomorrow to see more in our Christmas series 2019, looking at Jesus Christ, the promised one of God.
Right Mouse click or tap here to save this as an audio mp3 file
Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!
Thursday Dec 26, 2019
Thursday Dec 26, 2019
Christmas 2019 18. Shepherds, first on the Scene
8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
Luke 2:8-20
Having previously discussed Mary and Joseph, this time we’ll have a look at the shepherds, who apparently were the first people to see the new-born Son of God, the one we now describe as ‘Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ,’,
Shepherds were not sophisticated middle-class people. They were down-to-earth, rugged, hard working men, who tended and took care of flocks of sheep, mostly belonging to rich people. Some of them had a special role in looking after the flocks that produced lambs for the Temple sacrifices at Jerusalem. It’s known that these were pastured on the fields surrounding Bethlehem, because of it was close to Jerusalem. With that in mind, consider the fact that Jesus was to become ‘The lamb of who takes away the sin of the world!’ (John 1:29) Isn’t that remarkable? But there’s something else, too. Jerusalem was King David’s city but Bethlehem was his home town. That’s why Joseph had to travel to register there, ‘because he belonged to the house and line of David.’ (verse 4) With these ideas in mind it’s good to reread verses 8-11 again. It all comes together into what we can only think of as God’s superb plan for introducing His Son to the world..
These shepherds may have been ordinary people, representing the rank and file of humankind, but they were very privileged people too. That night out in the fields, unexpectedly, the curtain between heaven and earth was drawn back sufficiently for God’s messengers to be seen and heard. ‘An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them.’ Then a little later we read, ‘Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel.’ The message they brought was ‘Good news of great joy to all the people’ – the Saviour had been born in Bethlehem. It was made pretty clear to them that they were to bear witness to this tremendous event by visiting the Baby, then passing on the good news to others. What does all this say to us, as we approach Christmas by crossing Shepherds Fields?
First of all, that Jesus is for all people. Good news of his birth was entrusted to what a poet has called ‘a few farm workers!’ News of his resurrection was entrusted to a woman with a dubious history, Mary Magdalene. Jesus is for everyone, whatever their social rank or moral background. He’s the Saviour – he specialises in forgiving the past and creating a new future for all who put their faith in him.
Then, they did what was required of them. They went off immediately to find the Baby and confirm what the angel had said. They were eager to do what God wanted from them, which is a mark of true faith. Mind you, if we’d been among them, I think the excitement of heaven breaking through in the encounter with the angels and in the birth of God’s Son, would have sent us hurrying down to Bethlehem as well.
Then, they told everyone what had happened. They witnessed to others about their experience and the message they’d heard. Another mark of genuine faith is that we become so thrilled with what’s happened to us, that we simply overflow. We tell everyone about it. That’s what happened with Jesus’ disciples about thirty three years after this. They just couldn’t stop telling everyone the good news that Jesus was risen from the dead.
Finally, the shepherds glorified and praised God for all the things they’d seen and heard.
They did not draw attention to themselves. They did not entertain a ‘special status’ mentality because God had chosen them for this important role in the nativity. It’s a mark of true spirituality that all glory goes to God for the experiences he grants us.
We sign off with another question for you to consider. Verse 19 reads, ‘Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.’ The question is simply, ‘Will I give some time this Christmas, to pondering its significance for me?’
That is all for today! Come back tomorrow to see more in our Christmas series 2019, looking at Jesus Christ, the promised one of God.
Right Mouse click or tap here to save this as an audio mp3 file
Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!
Wednesday Dec 25, 2019
Wednesday Dec 25, 2019
Christmas 2019 17. Jesus, Downsizing in Love
Merry Christmas to you, where ever you are in the world! Christmas: that great global Christmas festival celebration. God wasn't born to Mary but the baby born to Mary was God! WOW!
1 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.
4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them. Luke 2:1-7
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. 8 He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.
9 The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
15 (John testified concerning him. He cried out, saying, “This is the one I spoke about when I said, ‘He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’”) 16 Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. 17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known. John 1:1-18
Happy Christmas Day! Today we have arrived and, hopefully, are giving some thought to the spiritual meaning of this celebration. This is Christ’s Mass. It’s about God sending ‘his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.’ Those words are found in 1 John 4:9, and are closely followed in verse 14 by these words, ‘The Father has sent his Son to be the Saviour of the world.’ Christmas is about incarnation.
Earlier in Advent I was thinking about the idea of the Creator of the universe becoming part of his own creation. It seemed to me to be the ultimate in ‘downsizing’. That’s a word people use when they sell their house and buy a smaller one to live in, for whatever reason. However strong one’s imagination in envisaging possible examples of downsizing, there is nothing greater than that of God becoming a human being, of leaving heaven to live on earth. And to be born in a stable, what’s more, not in a fine palace with all the trimmings of royalty. And this for the greatest of all reasons; to save humanity from its self-destroying lifestyle and to bring us back into a loving relationship with God, for now and forever. As I dwelt on these thoughts some verses began to form in my mind.
Downsizing! That’s the word we want
to tell what we’ve been through,
giving up our Knightsbridge pad
for a flat in Waterloo,
where the folk in cardboard boxes
are our neighbours in dire need;
we’ve come to show them the love of Christ,
not just in word, but deed!
He showed us how it should be done
when he came from heaven to earth;
downsizing in a massive way
to arrive through human birth.
The Son of God made just like us;
They call it ‘incarnation’,
God’s love at work in a human frame -
the Christmas celebration!
That first verse, by the way, is not a description of what has happened to me. It is an imaginary scenario that reflects what a number have people have done in responding to Christ’s love and the needs of people they encounter in life on Earth. Some have quite literally sold up and moved among the people they feel called to serve. Some have gone to other parts of the world in order to share the love of Christ, sinking their whole lives into the endeavour. No doubt, you can think of some current examples.
Christmas Day can be a lovely experience for most of us, as we come together as families and friends to enjoy good food and fun, and as we share Christmas greeting and presents. For others, it can be a very difficult day and it would be good for us to think of them prayerfully and to pray for those who devote their Christmas Day to cater for the needs of the less privileged members of our communities. They are, as my verses suggested, incarnating the love of God and the Lord Jesus.
That is all for today! Come back tomorrow to see more in our Christmas series 2019, looking at Jesus Christ, the promised one of God.
Right Mouse click or tap here to save this as an audio mp3 file
Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!